Tied sausage casing and method for tying



June 22, 1943. H. A. HENSEL 2,322,447

TIED SAUSAGE CASING AND METHOD FOR TYING I Filed June 25, 1938 2Sheets-Sheet 1.

June 22, 1943. H. A. HE-NSEL TIED SAUSAGE CASING AND METHOD FOR TYINGFiled June 25, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Henr a Afiensel IN VENTOR.

A TTORNEY.

Patented June 22, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENTIOFFICE 'rmn SAUSAGE CASINGAND METHOD ron 'rrmc.

Henry A. Hensel, Milwaukee, Wis.

Application June 25, 1938, Serial No. 215,727

7 Claims. (Cl. 99-175) This invention relates to sausage casings andparticularly to a novel method for closing an end thereof.

Artificial casings, particularly those of Cellophane or like compositionnow commonly used in the production of the larger varieties of sausages,are produced in flat tubular form cut to the desired length. Preparatoryto stufiing, the easing is closed at one end commonly by the use of asuitable cord wrapped, drawn and knotted about the casing, the purposeof the cord being to main tain the end of the casing closed against therelatively heavy internal pressures developed during stuffing and toprovide a hanger or support for the stuffed sausage during thesubsequent smoking process.

As heretofore applied. however, these cords frequently become loose orfail during the stuffing Operation and many times faiLas supports,during the smoking process, and are thus a common cause of defectivesausages and a substant al loss. application and tying'of the cords.with the tightness and security required, is a difficult and tedioustask and very hard on the'hands and fingers of the tier.

Furthermore, as heretofore practiced, the

These specific objections and difficulties are avoided by the use of themore recent method and apparatus disclosed in my prior Patents No.2,042,227 and No. 2,114,077, by which closing of the casing end iseffected by knotting' the material of the casing up'on'itself in apeculiar manner. As therein disclosed. the knotting operaticn involvesthe step of passing or drawing the casing through itself, a step whichrequires a high degree of flexibility or pliability in the easingmaterial which is attainable only by thor oughly wetting or soaking thesame. .However this method is objectionable in that it necessitatesstufilng of the casing immediately after knotting, since the casingshould be wet during stufflng. Rewetting adversely affects the materialof the casing and maintaining the casing in a wet condition forindefinite periods is neither practicable nor desirable.

An object of the present invention is to provide a novel and effectivemethod and means for securely closing a sausage casing end in a mannerto avoid all of the objections and difliculties above mentioned. This Ihave accomplished by utilizing a cord to effect closing of the casingend and by so applying the cord as to assure absolute security withoutnecessitating passage of the easing through itself.

Another object is to provide a sausage casing securely closed at one endby a tensioned cord penetrating the material thereof.

Another object is to provide a sausage casing securely closed at one endby a cord so attached and arranged that an intermediate portion of thecord constitutes an integral hanger loop.

Another object is to provide a novel method of closing a sausage casingend by a tensioned cord penetrating the material thereof.

Another object is to provide a novel method of wrapping and anchoring acord about and to a sausage casing to close an end of the casing.

Another object isto provide a novel method of securely interlocking acord with a sausage casing to close an end thereof.

Other more specific objects and advantages will appear, expressed orimplied, from the following description of an illustrative method andapparatus for utilizing the present invention.

, In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an apparatus, constructed inaccordance with the present invention, for tying and closing a sausagecasing end.

Figs. 2 to 8 are views illustrating successive steps in the method oftying a casing sausage end in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 2 illustrating the first step of thesame method as applied to larger sausage casings.

The apparatus selected for illustration includes a supporting plate I0adapted to be appropriately fixed in horizontal position upon the topsurface of a suitable work bench or table preferably adjacent an edgeofthe latter. A slender rod ll, fixed at one end l2 to the plate i0 andprojecting horizontally therefrom, provides an appropriate support for amultiplicity of artificial sausage casings a to be tied. Each of thecasings is preferably perforated, as at b, to receive the rod I I and tofacilitate their threading onto the rod in the manner indicated.

The rod shown is equipped at its outer projecting end with a suitablecord gripper preferably in the form of an inturned hook 13, the throatof which is normally covered by a resilient strip H, which merges at itsinner end into the rod II and which constitutes in effect an extensionof the latter. The purpose and function of this gripper will later bedescribed.

The apparatus shown also includes a gauge finger I5, carried by theplate I0 and projecting therefrom in a direction-parallel to but hori-Is fixed in a suitable bracket is, which iatter is.

attached at its inner end I! to an appropriate carrier l8 adjustablyfixed to the plate to. The

carrier shown comprises a slide plate i8 guided thereto and dependingfrom the forward edge thereof, adapted to support an appropriate sourceof cord supply, such as a ball of cord c. A tube 23, carried by thebracket 22 above the ball of cord 0, serves as a guide for the cord,

An appropriate razor or knife blade, carried by a disk 24 with its edge25 exposed in an opening in the disk. constitutes a convenient cordcutter. The knife carrying disk 24 is conveniently arranged, preferablyabove and at one side of the casing carrier rod II, and in this instanceis shown carried by an arm 26 adjustably fixed to a suitable uprightbracket 21 mounted upon the plate I0. I

With the several parts of the apparatus arranged as shown, and with itssupporting plate It) securely fixed to the top of an appropriate workbench or table, the several sausage casings a threaded upon thesupporting rod. II are individually tied by cord d supplied from theball c in the following manner.

Preparatory to tying, the free end of the cord d, as it emerges from theguide tube 23. is first drawn upwardly over and about the rod it infront of the casings-a, thence upwardly over, and about the gauge fingerl5, and thence under and over the rod ll, so as to form a loop e of cordsuspended between the rod II and finger l5, as indicated in Figs. 1, 2and 3. The spacing of the finger I! from the rod ll of course determinesthe length of this loop.

It will be noted that each casing a is provided with an additionalperforation f transversely spaced from the first mentioned perforationb, both perforations being preferably disposed close to the end of thecasing.

This additional perforation I in the foremost casing a is then threadedover the projecting end of the rod II, this casing, by this step in theprocess, being bent or folded so as to embrace those bight portions ofthe cord which constitute the base of the loop e and which arepositioned on and about the rod II.

The cord loop e is then withdrawn from the end of the finger I andtightly wrapped preferably a number of times about the casing a. asindicated in Figs. 4 and 5, to compress the end of the easing into atight bundle. In thus wrapping the loop e, it is preferably passedunderneath the rod H at the rear of the casing and over the rod at thefront of the casing, so that it is in eflect wrapped about the rod aswell as about the i s g The free end of the loop e is then passedbeneath the resilient strip it into engagement with the hook It, asindicated in Fig. 6, so as to be securely engaged by the latter, and thecasing a with its cord mapp s held taut, is pulled on the endof the rodII and over the hook I! to the position indicated in Fig. 7, therebydrawing the loop e through the casing and through the bights in the cordwhich had previously surrounded the red I I. The wrappings of cord aboutthe casing are then further tensioned by a final strong pull upon thecasing and against the resistance of the hook l3, while the loop a isstill engaged with the hook in the Fig. '7 position.

This results in an exceptionally secure and tight knotting of the cordabout the casing end. so tight in fact as to close and actually seal theend of the casing against leakage of either air or liquid, and so secureas toeliminate all possibility of acciden al removal of the knot.

That portion of the cord leading to the finished knot is then severed bypassing the same over the knife edge 25 in the manner indicated in Fig.8, so that the free end of the cord supply is then ready and availablefor the next tying operation.

It will be noted that in the finished knot, thus formed, both endportions of the cord are tightly embedded within a tight fold of theclosed casing end and that both are also so engaged and entangled withthat portion of the cord loop which extends through the casing end as toprovide an absolutely secure and effective anchorage therefor. Thisengagement and entanglement of the loop with those end portions of thecord also assures the maintaining of an effective binding tension in thewrappings of the cord about the casing, and that, together with the,fact that the wrappings involve a plurality of turns about the casing,explains the exceptional tightness and security of the knot. Moreover,the fact that the cord of the knot actually penetrates the material ofthe casing is ample assurance that the knot cannot be forced from thecasing by the rather heavy internal pressures developed duringsubsequent stumng of the casing.

It will also be noted that the loop e, extending from the finished knot,provides an appropriate hanger or support for the casing. It is thenatural and automatic result of the knot formation described, andprovides an integral closed loop without requiring the special step oftying together the ends of the cord, such as is required in the tyingprocesses heretofore used.

The tying method above described may be applied, with little or nomodification, to sausage casings of various sizes and weights. Whenapplied to larger casings, an additional perforation or perforations isordinarily provided in the casing, such as the third perforation f inthe casing 0. shown in Fig. 9. In tying such larger casing, the cord isfirst applied to andupon the supporting rod II and gauge finger IS inthe same manner as above described to form the loop e suspendedtherebetween andin front of the casing, and the additional perforationsj and f are then threaded over the end of the rod H with the casingreversely bent or folded, as indicated in Fig. 9. From that point on thetying process is performed in the same manner as above described.

The length of the cord loop e may of course be varied to suit thevarious sizes and weights of casings tied, or to accommodate more orless turns in the cord wrappings by adjustment of the slide plate l8 tothereby regulate the spacing between the rod ll andfinger I5.

Various changes may be made in the knot or the method or means forforming it as hereinabove specifically described without departing fromor sacrificing the advantages of the invention as defined in theappended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination with a sausage casing, of

a tie member knotted onto said casing, said tie member encircling saidcasing and having end portions engaged with another spaced portion ofsaid member within a fold of said casing.

2. The method of tying sausage casings which comprises forming a bightin one portion oi. a cord, engaging said bight within a fold of thecasing, applying another portion of said cord about the casing and ininterlocking engagement therewith; threading a portion of said cordthrough said bight, and tensioning said cord.

3. The method of closing a sausage casing with an independent cord whichconsists in forming a bight in the cord, folding the casing to embracesaid bight, wrapping a strand of the cord around the casing to therebyclose the casing, passing a portion or said strand through the materialof the casing and through said bight, and tensioning the cord to form aknot.

4. The method of closing a sausage casing with an independent cord whichconsists in doubling a cord upon itself to form a double strand having alooped end, forming a second loop in the double strand, folding thecasing to embrace said second loop, wrapping the looped end of thedouble strand about the casing to thereby close the easing, passing thelooped end of the cord through the material of the casing and throughthe second loop, and tensioning the cord to thereby form a knot.

5. The method of closing a sausage casing with an independent cord whichconsists in inserting a rod through the material of the casing, loopingthe cord about the rod, folding the casing and threading a secondportion thereof onto said rod to thereby embrace said loop within thefold, wrapping a strand of the cord about the casing to thereby closethe casing, engaging another portion of said strand with said rod, anddrawing said rod and said last-named strand portion through the casingand through said loop to thereby form a knot.

6. A tie for a sausage casing comprising a cord having a bight within alongitudinal fold of said casing, and a strand wrapped around saidcasing and penetrating the material of said casing and said bight.

7. A tie for a sausage casing comprising a double cord having a loopedend and having an additional loop embraced within a fold of said casing,the looped end of the cord being wrapped around the casing andpenetrating said addition al loop and the material of the casing tothereby form a knot closing said casing and a hanger loop integraltherewith.

HENRY A. HENSEL.

